The mining giant observed that the average price per carat rose 53 percent year on year to $129.50. Gem-quality diamonds accounted for 65 percent of the total volume sold. ALROSA sold 32.9 million carats in 2011, down from 39.5 million in 2010. Approximately 68 percent of ALROSA's sales were to clients with long-term contracts and 19 percent of sales came from auctions, while 13 percent was secured through short-term contracts.

ALROSA's diamond production is concentrated in six open-pit mines, three underground mines and several alluvial placers. Of the major projects, production decreased 21 percent at its Udachniy pipe to 10.4 million carats due to gradual phasing out of open-pit operations and transformation into an underground mine. Production also decreased at the Nyurbinskaya pipe, by 11 percent to nearly 7 million carats. Production at the International underground mine, however, rose 45 percent to 5.9 million carats, at the Jubilee pipe it rose 5 percent to 3.6 million carats and for the company's Mir underground mine, production jumped 22 percent to 1.3 million carats.